He lied on his shoulder, the wall right in front of him. Warm wall, thanks to him resting against it the entire night. Truth be told, it was a little too warm, but it didn’t really bother him, as his brain still drifted between the states.
It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered. As long as the alarm hasn’t rung, his workday hasn’t started...
He moved his head, trying to rest his forehead against the wall. Strangely, it was not there. He continued pushing his head forward until his neck met a strange, rounded edge. The surprise made him a tad bit more lucid. He shifted his head slightly. A strong wind moved his hair forwards and…
“IIIIchiiii!”
The wind – now carrying droplets of water – reversed and hit his body with enough force to fling him backwards. Awake in an instant, he looked around, terrified, encountering a huge golden body filling the horizon...
“I-I’m s-sorry little one...” a booming voice broke the silence.
It took him a few seconds to remember that he wasn’t at home, but in the tent of a titanic dragoness. He took a deep breath. “O-oh... Hello Kendall.”
“H-hello...” she smiled shyly.
He wiped the droplets covering his face and hair.
“I’m s-sorry... I didn’t w-want to wake you, b-but... you tickled m-my nose...”
He cringed a little bit, realising what the droplets actually were. “Well... thank you for being considerate...” He sighed. “... could you give me a bit of water? Like, in your hand?”
She nodded and quickly sat up, then poured water onto her palm and lowered it to him. Another rudimentary bath made him feel a bit better.
“H-have you... slept well?” she asked with anxiety.
“Yes. Of course. Like a newborn actually.” he nodded. “And you?”
“I-it was so n-nice...” Kendall smiled dreamily. “Snuggling the e-entire night...” She let out the air with contentment, but after a few seconds glanced at the tent’s entrance with a hint of worry.
His eyes followed, revealing the already high sun. “Shit, I overslept... Come.”
She gently picked him up and got out of her tent, cradling him next to her chest with one hand. Kendall stretched her wings, which made him realise that he hasn’t thought about massaging Ichi’s wings before...
He shook his head. Why Ichi’s specifically?
Speaking of the devil, Ichi emerged from her own tent, looking... extraordinarily pissed. “I take it the snuggle session went well.” she commented sourly.
“Uhmmm... y-yes... it was... very n-nice...” Kendall stuttered.
He smiled anxiously, concerned about the tone of Ichi’s voice. Thankfully, it caused her expression to soften ever so slightly.
“Where is Ni?” he asked, trying to change the subject.
“She got fed up and left an hour ago.” Ichi shrugged. “We didn’t want to waste any more time waiting.”
“Yet you are still here,” he commented.
She gave him an angry look. “Obviously to go with you, right? Ni can handle herself, but I doubt that you two can.”
“Do you have an idea where she went?”
Ichi rolled her eyes and pointed to the south-west with her thumb. “Hard to miss the path of destruction she leaves behind.”
“... Fair point…”
“Yeah.” Ichi’s eyes widened, as she mockingly nodded. “You might have made the plan how to kill it, but I am the one who knows how to actually find it. I know what I’m doing,” she ended proudly, then quickly snapped out of posing.
It was... weird. How she acted that is. As if she was mad, but at the same time attempting to prove something while trying and failing to hide it as well. A well of conflicting emotions, swirling wildly, producing constant contradiction.
“Yes... I guess that’s fair.” he responded, trying not to look too uncomfortable.
Ichi smirked.
“So how are we splitting up?” he asked.
“We are not.”
“Wouldn’t we cover more ground if we did?”
“Stupid human...” She let out an annoyed sigh. “The only way we could possibly split up would require me and Kendall to separate. And as much as I li...” She shook her head and cleared her throat. “And I would simply not leave her alone. Even if you went with her, since that is basically her being alone.”
He sighed and nodded. “Sorry... Apparently, I’m still asleep. Lead the way.”
She smiled smugly and turned around, gesturing to Kendall to follow. As they left the rock shelf behind, he wondered what might have pissed Ichi off to such a degree. Was it something he said? Or maybe...
A look of realisation entered his face before getting quickly replaced by a sly grin. Ni must have asked Ichi about the ‘massage’.
He tried not to laugh and was successful enough for only Kendall to notice and – her being her – simply smiled at him, happy that he is happy, no matter the reason. Collecting himself, he observed Ichi from his vantage point. She resembled Ni today, strangely enough… with how she moved and sounded. Probably because she was mad. And come to think of it, it wasn’t really that surprising – they were sisters after all... Her hips were really something, huh?
He shook his head, catching himself staring again.
It would never work... I have nothing to offer her.
YOU may think that. But why not ask her?
No! Well… maybe... but not now...
He focused on the environment again, pushing the weird and difficult to process thoughts away at least for now. They moved westward through a jungle of titanic trees and bushes unlike any he had seen, even in ZOOs. Down on the ground, the dragonesses' feet terraformed the ground and tiny bushes, leaving deep imprints and ripping out piles of grass with their claws.
Wait. Grass. The grass was normal sized. And now that he had focused on it, there were also – rare but still – regular trees he did recognise, but earlier mistook for bushes. Tinies fought for survival in a world of titans and were managing it, if just barely.
The air got humid and thick as they approached the heart of the jungle. They were quiet... or as quiet as two Titans could ever be. Which was surprisingly so – he couldn’t really hear Ichi’s footsteps, even though he was certain he would have felt them, were he on ground. Kendall was louder, with her footfalls causing audible thumps and cracks with each unfortunate bush.
On a more positive note, he did hear birds all around him, meaning there were also regular animals on this island... Then again, maybe that wasn’t good news? Being too small for titans to care about had its advantages...
Subconsciously, he hid a tad deeper in Kendall’s hands. Her grip tightened around him, leaving virtually no space to move, but also easing his nerves a bit. Time passed, until suddenly Ichi held up her hand, stopping Kendall from moving any further.
“What’s happening?” he whispered.
Ichi lifted a finger, her head turning towards him in silent order. The reason made itself clear soon enough – faint, distant rumble that was soon accompanied by deep, hoarse breath of something not just massive… but enormous.
“We’re close...” Ichi whispered. “Stay absolutely silent.”
They moved even slower now, and a few minutes later encountered a clearing. Not a natural one – all vegetation around has been viciously ripped out, now either missing or flattened into the ground to such a degree that it was barely distinguishable from the bare earth itself.
And the earth certainly was bare – claw marks, massive even in comparison to the dragon sisters’ own footprints, rendered rock and earth into dark-brown mud, with only a few tiny spots of grass scattered around the clearing.
In the center stood a clearly artificial hill… With a gaping hole leading inside...
The dragons squatted on the outskirts of the clearing, hiding behind the titanic trees. It suddenly hit him that bird chirps had stopped, leaving them in almost complete silence, broken only by the loud beating of Kendall’s massive heart and the gusts of wind blowing through the leaves. Before the silence became unbearable, he heard it. A stomp.
Kendall’s body stiffened, her breath hitching.
And then, he saw it. A massive creature entered the clearing, carrying a titan’s carcass in its jaws, moving in a slow and calculated, and distinctly predatory manner. Undoubtedly a kaiju, betrayed by the sickly blue and purple colours of its maw, it still differed significantly from its own kind. And that’s despite them all looking somewhat different.
It differed because it was truly enormous. Way larger than even category 8 that recently began emerging – one could probably fit three, or even four inside its body without much issue. It moved on all fours, yet even like that was almost as tall as one of the dragon sisters. It resembled some bizarre fusion of a crocodile and a sea turtle – as weird as it sounded – with hunched back, elongated flats on the sides of its tail, and sturdy paws, clearly meant for swimming, digging… and killing. It lacked eyes but had two rows of strange nostrils going along its snout. Its entire body was covered in glistering, thick, overlapping obsidian-black scales, the ones on its back glimmering with sickly blue halos. He realised that there was something sticking out of its back. A simple object resembling a stone knife was wedged between the scales... No, not a knife, it looked more like a spearhead.
It dropped the carcass next to the hill, laid on its belly, and began ripping it apart, taking huge bites of meat with each motion.
He realised that this thing... this monster... could probably kill a titan dragon with a single bite, or swing...
Kendall began heaving.
“Does it answer all your questions?” Ichi whispered almost inaudibly.
But still too loudly. Kaiju’s head instantly snapped towards them, causing Kendall to gasp. Ichi’s expression transformed into one of pure fear, as she stared at the monster sniffing the air. It took loud, deep inhales, its nostrils stretching to preposterous proportions as if trying to reverse the wind itself. Thankfully, it was currently blowing towards them.
Kendall was squeezing him so tightly that it was beginning to hurt. He tried to push her fingers away, achieving predictable results. The Kaiju let out a low growl, which caused Kendall to whimper in fear. It prompted the monster to pounce at them.
“RUN!” Ichi yelled.
But Kendall did not flee. She was frozen in place, staring at the charging monster. Ichi slapped Kendall in the face, which finally snapped her out of it. “RUN!”
And this time, she did. Completely forgetting about him, she clenched her hands into fists with him still inside.
The last thing he saw before passing out from the insane pressure was Ichi turning to face the Kaiju, leaping into the air, running on top of it for a split second and jumping off of it on the opposite side, prompting the thing to turn in place.
***
Darkness. Pure, impenetrable darkness that felt more like a complete lack of anything, rather than just light… No sight, no touch, no smell, no… nothing…
Horrifying. As close to non-existence as one could get without actually ceasing to be… He struggled against the infinite, uncaring void in despair, unable to break out of it. Slowly, he got used to fear and hopelessness. To sensory deprivation. To the gaping abyss with no beginning and no end… But eventually, something flashed. A sensation. Someone was… calling… Someone from the past, or…
***
“...tle one! Little one! LITTLE ONE!”
The screams were loud, but at the same time felt as distant as starlight. Present for sure, but so insignificant that it was more a curiosity than anything meaningful.
“Please! Don’t leave us like this you bastard!”
The voice was cracking, sounding more and more stertorous. But it’s message... Leave? Who would he leave? There wasn’t anyone he could leave anymore. The last meaningful people in his life were his parents, but even them he didn’t really see all that much after moving out. Everyone else was just... There. People who knew him but didn’t care enough to build a deeper relationship with him.
“P-please... Don’t leave...” The voice cracked completely. “Please...”
A bucket of warm water splashed over his chest, which was the final straw that prompted him to gather himself and return to full consciousness. He slowly opened his eyes, his eyelids weighing several tons. At first, the only thing he saw was just light. A golden sun above him so bright that he regretted the effort of opening his eyes.
But after a few seconds his vision refocused, his irises shrank and he realised that the sun above him was no sun, but a giant, golden face. A face with closed eyes, overcome with despair and mourning.
And tears drippling down her snout.
Another tear splashed next to him, soaking a small part of the blanket he was stretched on. His heart broke. Seeing such a pretty face warped by pain... “Why... are you... crying...” he whispered almost inaudibly.
A tear separated from the tip of her snout and splashed over his head with a bucketload of salty water. He gasped for air and forced himself to blink several times, trying to get the liquid out of his eyes.
Ichi’s yellow eyes opened, focusing on him in shock and disbelief. Suddenly, her face plunged down at him as if trying to discern if he wasn’t a mirage. She blinked, then let out a huge sigh of relief, coating his body in hot air. “You... you’re not dead!” she yelled, insanity and joy intermixing.
She reached for him but stopped a few meters before him and shakily curled her fingers, visibly restraining herself from picking him up.
“Why would I be...”
A sudden wave of pain struck his body. Pain that was soon joined by fear when he finally remembered what happened. The memories of getting crushed... A small space getting smaller and smaller without the slightest care about him... With no way to escape... He groaned, realising that his right arm and shoulder radiated an especially vicious kind of pain...
“I will be damned...” Ni laughed softly, hidden somewhere beyond his field of view.
“Are you alright?” Ichi returned to her concerned expression. “Do you want me to hold...”
He screamed when she touched his arms, causing her to instantly recoil away. He rolled on his left side and curled up, unable to decide if he wanted to cradle his right arm, leave it alone, or simply amputate it on the spot. The pain was unbearable.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to...”
It took him around a minute to calm down and gather his thoughts. He pushed himself up into a sitting position and grabbed his right arm. He looked up at Ichi with a pained expression.
“Is your arm broken?” asked Ichi.
“I-I mean...” He touched his hand, forearm, and arm, noticing that he could still move his fingers just fine. “... I think my... shoulder is just dislocated...”
“That ain’t too bad... someone’s just gotta pull you by the arm.” Ni commented.
He shrank into himself, the idea of even more pain paralysing him for a few seconds. He took a deep, shaky breath. “Do it...”
Ichi blinked. “Do... what?”
He looked her deep in the eyes. “Pull my arm. Fix it... Please.”
“Are... are you sure?”
“... Yes... Please fix it... Just... try to not rip it off...”
Ni snickered, earning an angry glance from Ichi. Ichi hesitated at first but then reached and grabbed him with her right hand, causing a brief spike of stress. She pinched his arm with her other hand and nodded at him. He shakily nodded back.
And then quickly stretched his arm outwards, making a hideous cracking sound and sending a pain that threatened to knock him out again. Ichi let go of his arm, letting it fall on his side. He whimpered, barely containing tears from forming.
However, he did regain control over his arm, and the massive pain was slowly fading away now, instead of pulsating like before. He stroked his right shoulder a few times, making sure it was still attached and intact. “Thank you...”
“Don’t thank me... It shouldn’t have happened in the first place...” Ichi whispered and brought him towards chest, gently cradling him.
Her words, her thundering heartbeat... her low, booming purr... and just being delicately held by her caused most of his pain and fear to disappear in mere minutes.
“Thank you, Ichi. I’m really grateful."
She finally – and almost reluctantly – extended her arms again to look at him from a more comfortable angle. He sat down and gave her a forced smile that she reciprocated. Looking around, he noticed they were back at their mountain camp, but one person was missing...
“Where is Kendall? Is she alright?” he asked.
Ichi turned around and gestured with her head towards the tents. “She’s fine...” She sighed. “Just traumatised.”
“Hmmm... yes. That thing was scary as hell...”
“... That too.”
The implication hit him a fraction of a second later, making his eyes widen.
“Are ya happy now, midget? Got a good look at it?” Ni broke his thought stream.
“... Right. Yes, I think I did... And I am basically certain that the plan will work... But we will need more explosives than I thought...”
This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
“Yes... I honestly didn’t expect it to be that big.” Ichi subconsciously glanced at Ni.
“What do you want?” Ni scoffed. “I sa... I mean, the researcher said it was huge.”
He glanced around, trying to determine how long he had been unconscious. The sun’s position suggested late afternoon, meaning that it had been several hours at the very least… unless it was the next day already, which he doubted.
“Which one of you is the fastest flyer?” he asked, cocking his head.
“That would be me... obviously.” Ni her hand.
He turned towards her. “How quickly could you fly me back to the continent?”
“What? Now? Why? And why her?” Ichi asked, clearly upset. “I could fly you back there as well...”
“Yeah, but I will get there before night falls.” said Ni.
“That is good to hear.” He nodded and turned to Ichi again. “And she IS the strongest. She can carry the most cargo, right? We will probably get everything we need in one trip. It saves time, you know.”
Ni suddenly got a little bit bigger... At least seemingly bigger. A look of confidence and superiority entered her face. Ichi sighed and reluctantly nodded. “Yes... that is a good point...”
“And besides, do you really think Kendall can be left alone with Ni? To tiptoe around the monster and lure it away for who knows how long?”
Ichi couldn’t help but laugh, if only a little.
“Fuck off midget,” scoffed Ni. “Don’t push your luck a second time today.”
“Perhaps you are right... Anyways, go get that bag of yours...” He turned to Ichi again “And Ichi... could you put me down for a bit?”
“You don’t like it here?” she asked.
“No, I just... Wanted to speak with Kendall... Alone.”
Her gaze softened. “That... might not be the best idea...” She hesitated. “She needs some time...”
“I understand... But I just want her to know that I am fine...”
Ichi sighed, before nodding and getting up from her knees. She slowly lifted the leathery entrance of Kendall’s tent and entered with her trademark uncanny silence. Kendall herself was balled up in the corner, quietly sobbing into her knees, and muttering something on the verge of audibility. “... again... I did it again...”
“Hey Ken...” Ichi said softly, gently caressing her sister’s head. “Look who I brought you...” She raised her other hand, presenting him.
“... L-little one... you are... f-fine?” Kendall looked at him, her eyes completely red from crying.
“Yes. Everything is well... I just wanted you to know that.” he smiled softly.
“I-I’m... so s-sorry...” She broke down again.
“Don’t be. Nothing happened. It’s all good.”
She vigorously shook her head. “N-no... Nothing is fine... I... I’m grateful t-that you are f-fine... but please... leave m-me...”
“Of course, Ken. Take as much time as you need.” Ichi whispered before retreating back outside.
“She really has a hard time with it,” he noted.
“I would be concerned if she didn’t,” Ichi admitted. “She will get over it. Just give her some time.”
“Hurry up morons, I don’t want to fly at night,” Ni scoffed, stretching her wings.
When Ichi turned to face her, she was already wearing the almost empty backpack on her chest. Ichi sighed and reluctantly handed him over to her sister.
“Don’t go near the Kaiju. Leave it food when it’s far away,” he said.
“Obviously...” Ichi huffed, getting visibly anxious. “... One close call is more than enough. I’m not suicidal.”
“Yeah... That’s Ni’s shtick.”
Ni raised him to her eye level and concentrated her angry gaze on him. “Do ye have a deathwish, midget?”
“Flail me around like that some more and I very well might...” he panted, recovering from sudden vertigo.
Ni rolled her eyes and brought him back down.
“Stay safe...” Ichi said, waving at them.
“You too!” he yelled in response.
Ni spread out her wings and deafened him almost instantly, gaining altitude much faster than Kendall. The acceleration forced him into her palm so hard that he couldn’t even sit and had to resign himself to lying instead. After a while, Ni stopped flying upwards, but her wings didn’t stop beating – she was not sparing any energy, not bothering with gliding like they all did the last time... As if she tried to show off.
He wasn’t so sure about that last one though, seeing as she hadn’t looked down at him so far, completely focused on flying. Covering his ears saved them at least some of the thunderclaps of her wings…
It seemed insane, but they were still gaining speed. There wasn’t any good point of reference for him to look at, but she was flying at least 200 kilometers an hour, probably more.
For the better. He remembered how long the trip had been the first time... It seemed that she was not simply cocky, when she promised to get there before nightfall...
***
Ni began descending, her wings straightening to glide down in a spiral. What a relief, they actually made it – for a second, he feared she was losing strength, not landing. Her feet hit the ground with a force that made him thankful for the softness of her palms.
Ni panted, her body twitching from exhaustion.
“Not bad,” he commented, barely hearing his own voice after all the rumble.
“Not... bad...?” She took a deep breath. “I’m fucking amazing, yer gowk.”
After that, she took a full minute to stop shaking from exhaustion.
“... So... Where are we?” he asked, looking around from his vantage point.
“On the continent,” she responded with a smirk.
“You don’t fucking say?”
Ni laughed and then grinned at him. “We’re like, 50, maybe 60 kilometers south of where we camped. Why?” She cocked her head.
“Where are we going to sleep?”
She blinked, her expression suddenly turning sheepish. He shook his head and pulled out his phone. It still had a good chunk of battery left, thanks to the energy saving mode and him not really using it that much. He opened the map to see where exactly they were now.
“What? You’re looking at the pictures... now?” Ni asked with annoyance.
“I’m looking where we are exactly. On a map, you know.”
“... This thing can do that?” She lowered her head, trying to focus at least one eye on the screen.
“It can do many things.” he mumbled, seeing the reflection of the titanic eye behind him.
He got the standard Google warning about being located in the exclusion zone and zoomed out to see better. Right now, they were closer to New Angeles, than to his home of ‘Who-the-fuck-cares number 41’, officially known as New Monica... But it was a good thing. He wouldn’t get the things he needed in a Lidl, but New Angeles had more than just general stores.
Then again, they were deep in the exclusion zone and even if, Angeles wasn’t exactly close... Just closer than Monica. The area behind the border was one big forest.
But that was actually a good thing. He kept forgetting that he couldn’t really take a titan into the city, so a forest was a pretty decent place to spend the night...
Suddenly, something peaked his attention. One of the small, grey dots, signifying points of interest on the map. This one was in the exclusion zone in the forest, with but a single road leading to it.
Clicking it displayed the full name. ‘Marine Corps Logistics Base.’
“Ni... If we are lucky, we might kill two birds with one stone.”
She blinked, refocusing her eyes on him. “Only two?”
“What do you...” He shook his head, realising how many birds she could probably down with a single throw. “I mean that there is a place, not that far away, that might have most of the stuff we need.”
“Great! Where exactly?” she lit up, filled with new energy.
“Like... 60 kilometers that way.” He pointed south-east. “There will be...”
Ni moved before he could finish, causing him to lose balance in her hand. He gathered himself and sat.
“What’s the matter?” she asked almost innocently.
“... There will be buildings in a forest,” he responded, ignoring her tease. “And a single road leading to those buildings... That is, if they are still standing.”
“They better be... I don’t want to spend more time than I have to over here...” She glanced at one of the kaiju carcasses littering the ground.
“Are you scared of the kaijus?” he asked, grinning mockingly.
Her hand twitched in response, causing him to lose balance even in sitting position. “I am beginning to regret some things...” she whispered through gritted teeth. “But no, I am not scared of some bitch-ass Kaiju... But I am... uhhh... concerned about the... things that killed them.”
“You’re scared of the bombs and rockets?”
“I am CONCERNED about them, you hear me midget?” she looked at him, annoyed, but also clearly afraid.
She walked past a small settlement. A town that once housed maybe a thousand people at most. Most of the buildings either gone, or so damaged it was surprising they haven’t joined the others yet. Rubble, rusting metal and dust littered the streets, covering whatever remained of past glory and prosperity. In the center of all that, a massive kaiju skeleton, picked clean by insects long ago.
“Don’t worry Ni. You will be fine.”
“You say that, but how could you know? What if they see me?” she asked anxiously.
“Oh, they absolutely see you.”
She stopped, her head snapped to him, her eyes filled with dread. “What do you mean?!”
“Ni, they see you. Very clearly. We have devices that can see you from literally hundreds of kilometers away with no issue. We just... don’t care.” He shrugged. “They don’t care. You are a titan, not a kaiju, and they know it. So as long as you don’t go near people, they will leave you alone to do your own thing.”
Ni took a few deep breaths. “So, what I’m hearing is... Ichi’s plan almost got us all killed? When we... uhhh... borrowed you?”
“You mean the plan that involved you strolling into the city, wrecking some stuff, and kidnapping me? Yeah, you would have gotten absolutely smashed, if...”
A sudden realisation hit him so hard that he facepalmed. It was obvious… How could he not notice it before? “Ohhh... You waited for the kaiju wave to make your move, right?”
Ni nodded and returned to walking. “Yeah. I was flying for days looking for it before it happened. Ichi said that the kaijus would make you too busy to care about us.”
“Yeah, she was right.” He nodded. “They probably expected you to just fly over the city and... I don’t know, go into the mountains or something.”
Ni entered the forest. Most of the trees either dead or toppled which forced her to slow her pace and focused on trying to not hurt her feet on tree stumps. He on the other hand... he wondered if they were under some sort of constant surveillance. The dragons that is. Them making tents, campfires and all that other stuff were clear indicators that they weren’t like other titans. Signs of sapience and intelligence. But despite this, the public had no idea that there was another sapient species on the planet... even if that species was composed of just three females.
Wait... Three females? And three sisters no less. No males, no offspring, no... nothing. He knew that they were incredibly old, but even then, it didn’t really add up that it would be just the three of them...
“Look! That’s the place you talked about!” Ni yelled with excitement, pointing directly in front of her.
He followed her finger and confirmed that it did look like the Marine base. A few, mostly collapsed buildings in once neat rows, a hangar, some old vehicles parked inside... And something that looked like a bunker entrance.
“Yeah, it’s here... If we are lucky, I might get most of the stuff here. If we are extremely lucky, it will have everything, but don’t count on that.”
“Cool. Get to it then and I will make us… a fire or something, I don’t know.”
She put him on the ground and began toppling trees around the base. Feeling the ground shake he realised that the trembling got familiar enough to retain his footing this time.
He forced the old vehicle gate open and investigated the vehicles. Mostly old APCs and IFVs... at least if he remembered history correctly. The cannons mounted on their tops looked laughably small in comparison to the calibers used nowadays... Which was most likely the reason why they were left behind. No one used infantry, nor mobile tactics anymore, simply because humans mostly stopped fighting each other a few decades ago and weaponry meant to kill humans did virtually nothing to the kaijus.
He examined the first vehicle, opened the hatch, and lowered himself inside, his right arm still somewhat aching from his adventure with the dislocated shoulder.
The interior was... not in great condition. Cold and humid metal walls with paint that was coming off under the slightest touch, never mind the jiggling Ni’s footsteps were subjecting it to. He checked around for any ammunition but found the storage empty. There was one treasure inside the vehicle though.
The radio sets. Big, outdated, but mostly intact, at least at first glance. Unsurprisingly, the battery was dead after decades of abandonment. He didn’t even bother trying to remove it without tools and simply resigned, getting out of the vehicle.
The sun was setting, and he doubted he would be able to work in darkness, but he could look around for any leftover tools. An hour of snooping around the buildings, looking for anything remotely useful rewarded him with… less than spectacular results. A slightly bent crowbar, some derelict power generator, a fire axe in actually good condition and an adjustable wrench, rusted beyond comprehension and completely stuck in one position.
Nevertheless, he brought everything outside and put it next to a pallet of old tires. Ni finished the pile of trees in the middle of a newly created clearing and braced herself, her serpentine neck bending backwards. A stream of blueish fire ignited the wood instantly.
He couldn’t help but clap – an act that didn’t escape her attention. She instantly became proud of herself.
“This will never get boring.” he said, sitting on the bedroll in front of the campfire the size of a forest fire.
“Did you find anything?” Ni leaned back and supported herself on her arms.
“There’s some stuff I can use... But I haven’t extracted it yet. Too dark to work. Same thing with the bunker – it might be an ammo depot, but it’s simply too dark to go inside.”
“You’re gonna have a busy day tomorrow then,” she commented with a certain… longing in her voice.
“Yeah...” He sighed and suddenly felt his grumbling stomach. “... Do you have any food with you?”
“Yes... But it’s too useful to eat right now...” she smiled evilly.
He rolled his eyes and huffed. “Yes yes, threaten me with getting eaten, har har, very funny...”
“Bet yer ass it is. Always gets a reaction from you.” She grinned, showing him the collection of fangs. “And truth be told, I am getting kind of hungry...”
“Ichi told me you don’t eat people, so you can quit it now. It won’t work.” he said, trying to appear confident, despite his voice faltering.
“Oh, really now? My big sister told you that?” Ni straightened herself. “And it hasn’t occurred to you that she just tried ease your nerves, midget?”
Of course he had considered it. But even though Ichi wasn’t against lying, she couldn’t lie very well – at least that’s from what he gathered. So, she did not lie... probably.
Ni shifted a bit closer and moved her legs above him. He found himself in a rather… peculiar position. Ni was cross sitting, with her legs forming a small plaza around him. He couldn’t help but nervously glance around at the golden, muscular walls of the arena... and the cruel goddess gazing upon him from above...
“I love the feeling of having someone on my tongue. Feeling them squirm and scream in fear, as they travel down to my belly…” She poked him. “It’s so funny to hear their screams down there... They always beg to be let out before they dissolve…”
He gave her an unamused look, which only exacerbated her grin... somehow.
“You know, not so long ago, we used to swim in the ocean, looking for those wooden ships with white sails. We would find them and then pluck humans from them…” Ni licked her lips. “Put them straight in our mouths one at a time...”
“Bullshit,” he cut her off, crossed his arms, then leaned back and supported his back on her calf.
“And how can you tell that, midget? You weren’t there,” she cocked her head, piercing him with red eyes.
“Three things. First – Kendall is scared of water. She wouldn’t swim. Second – Kendall eating or hurting anyone on purpose... come on.” He spread his arms. “And most importantly, third – People on those wooden ships stank like shit boiled in vinegar. I doubt you were ever desperate enough to not puke from that.”
Ni blinked, losing her predatory grin. And then laughed. So hard, that she began snoring and wheezing. After a while, she wiped her face and lifted his chin with a finger. “You’re gonna kill me one day, midget...” she panted, still giggling. “But you got me there... fuck, that is a killer description...”
“Yeah...” he regained a bit of confidence.
“But you are wrong about Kendall though. She’s not scared of water... I mean, she is now, but that’s because she’s scared of what’s in it,” she replied, with a more serious tone.
He raised an eyebrow. “Really? I mean, she did look terrified of that huge Kaiju on the island, but...”
“Midget...” she cut him off. “She was spending like, half of every warm day swimming. Diving. Fishing. Since… as far as I remember, really.”
“Huh...” He tried to scratch his head, but Ni’s finger blocked all possible routes to it. “She must have been ripped from all that swimming.”
“Oh, she was. She looked almost like me... I mean, she’s smaller, but still.”
He tried to nod, but his chin was still firmly held in place. They looked at each other for a while, until the silence started getting uncomfortable.
“…Could you let me go now?”
“And why would I do that, eh?” She smirked.
“Uhmmm... because I... asked you nicely?”
A sly grin returned to her face. “Dear midget... You still don’t understand your situation... There is no one around. No one who could help you. No one who could save you. I can do anything I want with you and there is nothing you can do to stop me... After all... it’s my night...”
Oh fuck...
OH FUCK!!!
He forgot about that. He was so occupied by the kaiju problem that he forgot the... other thing...
He nervously smiled at her, wondering if this is how he dies... “Uhmmm... S-sure... what do you... want to do?”
Ni finally took her finger away. “I’ve been asking myself this question...” she let out a huff. “You know those... sounds that Ichi made? I don’t know what you did, but... do the same to me.” Her cheeks turned just a little bit red.
“I-I mean, I didn’t do anything special...” he mumbled. “I think it was just… a back rub, and… Ichi was just repressed as hell…”
Ni laughed again, bending in half for a second. “Damn it, you are killing the mood!”
He wiped his forehead, feeling sweat droplets rolling down. “I-I just... didn’t think you would want such a thing with... me...”
Her lips tightened, as her cheeks turned a bit more red. She was visibly struggling against her instinct to turn her head away from him. “Listen, you little shit... It’s not that I... Like you, or anything...” She collected herself. “I see how Ichi looks at you. It’s not like that... I just want what she got. No, I want more. Everything.”
“... How Ichi... looks at me?”
She crossed her arms. “Midget... let’s just say, that I have NEVER seen her cry. Never, you hear me?”
Putting it into context how long they’d lived... His brain broke. He realised that she had gotten possessive, but to think that... it was to such an insane degree... His stupid escape plan apparently worked way too well... But the strangest part was... he didn’t mind.
“I have... two questions... No, one question and a request... Before we begin.” he said.
“Shoot.”
“First of all... What happens if I... refuse?”
It was an important question that would provide a lot of context to the situation.
“You... don’t want to?” she asked, her enthusiasm draining as she spoke.
“No no, I’m not saying that! I don’t have anything against… doing it with friends... I just... want to know.”
“Hmpf, we’re friends now, eh? Good to know midget.” Ni cackled. “As for your question... Maybe I will accept it and leave you alone? Maybe I will hang you by the ankles for the night? Maybe I will shove you up my ass? The possibilities are endless, really.” She grinned slyly. “I'm unpredictable.”
He couldn’t help but laugh, even if nervously. It came to him that one day, she would exploit every single jab he ever made. “Isn’t that an... interesting idea...” He wiped the sweat from his forehead again. “... I take it you are not really interested in flirting?”
“You can tell me how awesome I am while you work, midget. Now get to it.”
“...Fine... Lay on your belly, I will give you a backrub...”
She eagerly obliged, her tail literally wagging from excitement. He stripped himself down to his underwear and climbed on top of her through her leg, then approached her neck. He felt rock hard muscles and sinews under his feet, her body seemingly not noticing him at all, with even her scaly skin refusing bending under his weight. There was a massive difference between her and her sister – Ichi was fit, but Ni was pure muscle.
“Just promise me one thing, okay?” he said, getting on his knees.
“What now?”
“... Promise me you won’t start catfighting with Ichi over me,” he said half-jokingly.
The mountain beneath him began trembling. “You think yer such a treasure, midget?”
“I am not, but I know you three can get stupid ideas.”
“... Heh, catfighting with Ichi... That would be such a clusterfuck that I’m almost tempted... But no worries midget... I value my own life.”
That last part made him hesitate… But that was the closest equivalent of a promise he was going to get out of her. He resigned himself to the task. At least at first it went passably. Her sleek neck was easy... or more aptly – possible to massage. But soon, he hit a wall.
Literally. No matter how hard he pushed, her back would not budge at all. He literally lifted himself on his hands and it still did nothing. In an act of desperation, he hit the ground with his fist... And instantly regretted it. It was like concrete. His hand was unbroken by pure luck.
“Fuck!” he yelled, holding his hand close to his chest.
“What’s the matter?” Ni raised her head a little.
“I can’t... massage you. Your muscles are too strong; I can’t bend them like... at all.”
She chuckled and lowered her head down again. Suddenly, the ground below him began shifting and loosening, until it finally resembled flesh again.
“... You did that on purpose, didn’t you?” he asked, trying not to fume.
“You can’t prove it... And get back to work.”
He relaxed his hand by flapping it a few times and pushed against her back again. This time he was actually able to bend something, even if with great difficulty. It was truly exhausting, far more than the massage he had given Ichi a few days ago... And the fact that he was very, very hungry didn’t really help to maintain his strength.
A rumble resonated beneath him. It startled him, but he quickly realised that Ni was purring... Or at least he guessed that for her, this deep growl passed for a purr.
He did his best to ignore his aching shoulder and continued, until reaching the end of the thoracic part of her back. He stopped for a few seconds to wipe the sweat dripping from his head.
“Keep going midget... It’s quite nice...” she said, adjusting her arms a little.
He took a few deep breaths, trying to brace his muscles for even more work. Continuing down her spine, the purring intensified… which piqued his curiosity – was she doing that on purpose, or subconsciously.
“A bit to the left.” she commanded.
He obliged and focused his attention there. After a few touches, her body twitched, launching him a few centimeters up. Undeterred, he continued to work tirelessly. She shook her hips in contentment. The cycle continued, until he reached the two mounds in the rear.
“Mhhh... Now we’re talking...” she hummed.
The hills in front of him were... not as massive as Ichi’s. And also had one crucial difference that became apparent once he began working on them. Ichi’s butt was fit, but a bit plump. Ni’s was pure muscle, which made it somewhat less shapely… Unironically, the tightest ham he had ever witnessed.
Which said way less than he was willing to admit.
As her tail swooshed above him, he realised that... he actually liked it. It was exhausting for sure, but getting appreciated by beings as huge as her... It filled him with weird pride.
When he reached the hilltop... it twitched. Or rather, a wave passed through it. Violently. It sent him falling into the place between the twins...
Ni tightened her butt, holding him in place and preventing him from sliding all the way inside.
“I was joking with the ass shoving...” she laughed, reaching for him and plucking him out of his prison.
She sat down on her knees and put him in front of her. She looked pleased. Her body twitched with anticipation... And yet her face showed... doubt. And inner struggle.
“I haven’t finished yet, you know.” he said, looking up at her.
“I know...” She bit her lip, clearly hesitating.
“You want to do it like this? You know, it’s a bit high for m...”
“No midget, it’s not that...” Ni waved her hand. “I just... think that...” She sighed, shook her head, and focused her gaze on him. “We shouldn’t go any further.”
A moment of stunned silence followed.
“... Why?” he forced out. “You said you wanted everything and more...”
“I know what I fucking wanted, midget,” Ni snapped. “But I... thought about this... and I no longer think it is a good idea.”
He sat down, feeling a strange mix of emotions swirling inside him. “Why?” he repeated.
Ni scoffed. “Because... I don’t want to... hurt my sister,” she forced out.
He blinked and scratched his head.
“I’ve never seen her act like... that. It’s stupid. It’s hilarious. And I will absolutely give her shit for it for the rest of time... But I do not want to hurt her. If... the thing she has for you breaks... If her heart closes forever because I... fingered myself with you...” Ni closed her eyes and shook her head. “I wouldn’t forgive myself for the rest of my life.”
He stared at her, genuinely surprised. That she was capable of self-reflection... But then again, he only knew her for a few days – not much time to judge any of them yet.
He slowly nodded. “I... understand...”
“Yeah...” She looked up at the stars, trying to escape his gaze.
“I don’t know if it means anything to you Ni... But I’m proud of you.”
She looked at him again; her eyes filled with both frustration and gratitude. “Yeah... Thanks, I guess... You got lucky... Or unlucky. Cuz like, look at me.” She tried to restore at least a bit of her smirk.
“You keep surprising me, you know?” he said honestly.
“Betcha didn’t expect me to be a fucking angel, eh?” She rolled onto her side.
“An angel of destruction maybe.” He smirked, taking a spot next to her.
“Hah! Now that’s a good nickname. Sounds badass.” She smiled, regaining her cockiness.
“It suits you.”
He rested his head on his arms and looked at the stars too. He always liked to do it. It was calming, seeing something so vast, but also so static and unchanging. It brought a sense of stability, but apparently, he was the only one who thought of it like that. He even saw a brief glimpse of an orbiting satellite...
“You know Ni... I’m collecting kisses from pretty girls, if that’s any consolation prize...” he began, surprised that the words actually left his mouth.
Ni chuckled. “Collecting? How many do you have already?”
“Five... including my mother...”
“So, four... Honestly, more than I expected...” She paused and after a split second shrugged. “Okay, come here...”
She grabbed him with her left hand and brought him closer to her face. He reached out and kissed the tip of her snout.
“Sorry, I’m not collecting kisses from midgets,” she mocked.
“Maybe you should.” He spread out his arms.
“Hah... Fine, I will go catch a few tomorrow.” Before he could think of a response, his head was enveloped between her lips. It was honestly not a kiss – more suckling his head like a lollipop. Her tongue played with him for a few seconds before she relented and pulled him out. “There you go. Now five,” Ni said and laid on her back.
He found himself on her belly. Surprisingly soft... but no doubt only because she wished so.
“Sleep well, midget.” She yawned.
“You too, Ni. You too...”
***